


Dreams of Mom

by A Magiluna Stormwriter (ariestess)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Backstory, Gen, Mother's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-10
Updated: 2018-05-10
Packaged: 2019-05-05 03:48:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14608629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ariestess/pseuds/A%20Magiluna%20Stormwriter
Summary: Mother's Day always feels strange to Paige, but she can never quite figure out why.





	Dreams of Mom

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jungle_ride](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jungle_ride/gifts).



> ...coming soon...

Mother's Day always feels strange to Paige, but she can never quite figure out why. She remembers it always being a special day for just her and her mom. Daddy always disappears for the day and lets the two of them do whatever they want, but only after the two of them make breakfast for Mom. This year, she's eleven and it's her first time making breakfast all by herself. Daddy said that she's old enough to make this special meal without his help, and so she is.

It's the morning of Mother's Day, and Paige is having a harder time getting out of bed than usual. Particularly given the enormity of just how special today really is for her and her mom. She should be up and heading downstairs to make breakfast, but she's still lying in bed, feeling out of sorts.

She had the dream again last night. It always feels so real when she has it. Living in a lovely little cabin in the woods. She is very little in the dream, maybe a couple of years old, and she remembers this sweet, melodic voice that always sings her to sleep when she's tired or not feeling well. The song feels familiar in the dream, but she never remembers the words or even the melody when she wakes up, but it leaves an _ache_ in her chest upon waking. The scent of lilacs is always so strong in the dream, and she assumes that her mother wears it, but she knows all too well that Mom is allergic to lilacs. The dream comes here and there, but it always seems more prevalent around Mother's Day and her birthday for some reason.

Shaking her head as the alarm goes off again, Paige rolls out of bed and slips into slippers and robe. She grabs the card and gift she painstakingly made in school. She even skipped recess to make sure it came out _just right_ for her mom. Turning eleven and getting to do more things like make breakfast for her mom has made her feel so grownup for some reason. But it also makes her feel like she's missing something important that she can't figure out. 

Maybe she can ask Mom about it later, but first she needs to get the day started right. Heading downstairs with card and gift, she finds Daddy sitting at the kitchen table, reading the paper and sipping his coffee. He offers her a smile and accepts her kiss to his cheek, but says nothing as she begins to make the meal she's meticulously planned out. She fills the kettle with water, pouring two packets of blueberries and cream oatmeal into a bowl, then stirs a spoonful of sugar into the mix. A pair of blueberry frozen waffles go into the toaster, and then fruit salad is next as everything heats up. She can feel Daddy's eyes on her as she uses the paring knife to cube up the slices of melon and drop them in another bowl. Adding in the berries, she nibbles at a few herself until the kettle whistles. 

Once she gets the entire meal plated and set on the tray, Paige carefully adds her card and gift and checks the balance. Satisfied, she heads upstairs to her parents' bedroom. A soft knock on the door is answered by her mom calling her in. She opens the door and picks up the tray again, stepping in with a bright smile.

"Happy Mother's Day, Mom," she says, setting the tray across her mom's lap, then kisses her cheek. "I hope you like everything."

"It looks wonderful, sweetheart. Will you sit with me while I eat?"

"Of course, I will, Mom." 

Paige moves to climb onto the bed, curling into her mom's side. She smiles and watches as her mom eats some of her food, offering the rest to Paige as part of their tradition. As she eats, her mom opens the card and gets all teary at what is written inside. She kisses Paige's forehead and hugs her tightly before opening the gift: a small shadow box of different pictures of the two of them with dried flowers and other little trinkets that they've collected over the years. It took Paige so long to make sure it was _just right_ enough to be acceptable.

"Oh, sweetheart, this is beautiful. I'm going to set this right here next to my bed so that I can fall asleep to these lovely memories of ours and then wake up to them again every morning. Is that okay with you?" Paige nods and snuggles into the tight hug from her mom. "Paige, are you sure you're okay this morning? You seem awfully quiet."

Paige shrugs and takes a deep breath. "I just had a weird dream last night, Mom. It's nothing."

Mom's gentle hand strokes her cheek, subtly forcing her to meet her gaze. "You sure it's nothing? You know you can tell me anything, sweetheart."

She chews at her bottom lip for a moment, debating if she should or not. Finally, she takes a deep breath and starts to speak. "Have you always been allergic to lilacs, Mom?"

"I'm not sure? I just remember when you gave me some for Mother's Day that year you were four and I broke out in hives. Why do you ask?"

"I-- It's silly, Mom, but I keep having this weird dream about living in a cottage in the woods with you, surrounded by lilacs, but I can never _see_ you. I just feel you there, but it feels weird, too." She shrugs and leans into her mom's embrace even more. "It's probably nothing. Never mind."

"Our dreams can be silly or scary, but I like to think that they always have a lesson for us to learn. Maybe your dream is just reminding you that you'll never be alone as long as your old mom is around."

Paige smiles at that and giggles softly, then leans up to kiss her cheek. "I like that idea. Thanks, Mom. And Happy Mother's Day again. You're the best mom in the whole world."


End file.
